1. Related Data
The subject matter of the present utility patent application has been registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office under the Disclosure Document Program. The request was received at the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Mar. 6, 1996 and was assigned the registration number 393,673.
2. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fill valves for toilet tanks and more particularly pertains to a new Bifurcated Fill Valve Assembly for permitting removal of a fill valve from a toilet tank without disturbing the seal at the toilet tank and without disconnecting the water supply line.
3. Description of the Prior Art
The use of fill valves for toilet tanks is known in the prior art. More specifically, fill valves for toilet tanks heretofore devised and utilized are known to consist basically of familiar, expected and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad of designs encompassed by the crowded prior art which have been developed for the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.
Known prior art fill valves for toilet tanks include U.S. Pat. No. 4,945,944; U.S. Pat. No. 4,903,731; U.S. Pat. No. 4,765,363; U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,096; U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,826; and U.S. Pat. No. D314,610.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives and requirements, the aforementioned patents do not disclose a new Bifurcated Fill Valve Assembly. The inventive device includes a tank fitting extended through and mounted within an opening in a wall of a toilet tank and a fill valve including a valve body having an inlet portion wherein the inlet portion of the fill valve is releasably coupled to the tank fitting within the toilet tank. As such, the fill valve can be uncoupled from the tank fitting and removed from the toilet tank while the tank fitting remains mounted within the toilet tank and coupled to a water supply conduit that supplies water to the fill valve when in use.
In these respects, the Bifurcated Fill Valve Assembly according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of permitting removal of a fill valve from a toilet tank without disturbing the seal at the toilet tank and without disconnecting the water supply line.